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SS Baez, RHP Hendricks named Cubs Minor League Player, Pitcher of the Year

Javier Baez was named Minor League Player of the Year after blasting 37 home runs between Daytona and Tennessee. (Photo by Aldrin Capulong/Daytona Cubs)

Cubs shortstop Javier Baez and right-handed starter Kyle Hendricks were named the organization’s Minor League Player and Pitcher of the Year, respectively, Friday morning.

Baez may have raised his stock as much as anyone in baseball this season. On the year, the 20-year-old hit .282/.341/.578 (AVG/OBP/SLG) with 37 homers, 24 doubles, four triples and 111 RBI in 130 games between High-A Daytona and Double-A Tennessee. The ninth-overall pick in the 2011 draft led all of minor league baseball in RBI and extra-base hits (75), while his 37 homers were tied for the second-best mark in 2013. He became the first minor league player in 17 seasons to reach 30 doubles, 30 homers, 100 RBI and 20 stolen bases in a season since D.T. Cromer managed the feat in 1996.

Baez was named a midseason Florida State League All-Star after hitting .274 with 17 homers, 15 doubles and 57 RBI in 76 games with Daytona. On June 10, he became the first player since 1996 to hit four home runs in a game. He was promoted to Tennessee on July 6, where he hit .294 with 20 homers, 15 doubles and 54 RBI in 54 contests.

The infielder has a minor league career line of .286/.342/.562 with 54 homers, 49 doubles and 158 RBI in 215 games.

Hendricks made 27 starts between Tennessee and Triple-A Iowa this season, going 13-4 with a 2.00 ERA and 128 strikeouts in 166.1 innings. The 23-year-old walked just 34 batters, giving him a 3.76 K-to-BB ratio, and surrendered only five home runs while limiting opponents to a .229 average. His ERA was the seventh-best among full-season minor leaguers.

Hendricks opened the season with a 10-3 record and a 1.85 ERA in 21 starts for Tennessee, where he earned Southern League midseason All-Star honors. He recorded a 0.84 ERA in his last seven Double-A starts, prompting a promotion. In six starts with Iowa, Hendricks went 3-1 with a 2.48 ERA, walking 27 over 40 innings.

Hendricks was acquired from Texas for Ryan Dempster at the trade deadline in 2012. He has a 21-14 career record and a 2.42 ERA in 349.2 innings, and was originally selected in the eighth round of the 2011 draft.

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